In Your Arms
by 123HSMluver
Summary: Troy is forced to face his worst fear. Losing Gabriella. ONE SHOT. PLEASE NOTE: Character death.


**AN: Hey you guys. This was just a random idea floating around in my head and I thought I'd write it down on paper. NOTE: Character death. Read at your own risk. Let me know what you thought of it. Without further ado…enjoy.**

Gabriella hopped off of the bus and stumbled up the steps to her home in the residence of Stanford University. She fiddled with the lock on the door and finally slammed herself into the room, sighing in relief when she realized that her room mate, Morgan, wasn't in the room.

Gabriella dropped her purse on the bed and collapsed beside it. What in the world was she going to do? She had just gotten home from a routine doctors appointment that had gone horribly wrong. The doctors had noticed something come up on her scans and they had run some more tests to confirm what they thought was wrong.

Gabriella was dying.

The doctors had told her that she had a brain tumour growing in the base of the skull and had gone undetected for years. For _too many_ years. It was now too large for them to operate on without damaging her brain. They had sent her home from the hospital telling her that she had weeks left to live. Gabriella didn't even know where to begin. First she had to tell everyone, then get home and see them all before anything happened to her. Then there was the matter that she still had her whole life spread out in front of her, ready for to live and now she couldn't even graduate. Now she couldn't even finish the term she had already started.

Gabriella had never given much thought to how she would die, but now that she was forced to think about it, she didn't like it very much. If she had to die, then she would rather die knowing she had helped someone to live a better life. She hadn't done that yet in her life, yet only had a few weeks to live. She never thought that she would be silenced this early in her life. She had only graduated high school just over a year ago. She wasn't _ready_ to give up yet! What was she going to tell her family? Her friends? Her teachers? Troy?

One thing was for certain. If she was going down, then she wasn't going down without a fight.

* * *

Troy took a sip of his cream soda and laughed along with his friends. He was currently at a bar on the campus of his university and was the only one that wasn't drinking alcohol. His friends kept poking fun at him and told him to go ahead and take a drink, but he refused, saying he preferred to think straight and keep his thoughts in his head, rather then blurt them out in the open for everyone to hear. Especially since most of his thoughts were about a certain brown-haired beauty.

Since their second year of university had started he had seen Gabriella every other weekend, and was due to see her this weekend. Troy was more than excited. He lived for the weekends in which he could see her again. To see her face, hear her laugh, feel her in his arms. He called her every night but it wasn't the same to talk to her on the phone. He longed to see her in person and to see the twinkle in her eyes when she laughed her cute little laugh.

_______Flashback_______

_"I miss you Troy!" Gabriella said over the phone, twirling the cord around her finger._

_"Relax Brie, I'll see you in about ten minutes, I'm just pulling off the highway now." Troy laughed. Gabriella groaned and shifted from foot to foot, impatient._

_"How can you stay so calm? I'm all jittery." She asked, her brow furrowing as she tried to figure it out._

_"Believe me, Gabs, I'm just as excited as you. I just have enough acting skills to hide it. University's done wonders to my acting skills."_

_Gabriella laughed._

_"I know, Troy. I just wish I could say the same for myself."_

_"Yeah…you need to work on your skills. I'm __so__ better then you now." Troy bragged. Gabriella gasped._

_"TROY!"_

_"But I love you anyway." He added quickly. Gabriella sighed._

_"Yeah love you too." She said sarcastically. "Now hang up the phone and concentrate on the road. I don't want you getting in a car accident."_

_"Alright. I'll come right up to you room. I love you."_

_"Love you too, Troy. Bye."_

_Gabriella hung up the phone and smiled. He really was one in a million. A sudden thought caused to her gasp. She only had ten minutes to get ready. She let out a squeak, causing her to get an odd look from her roomie, Morgan, and then hurried over to the closet._

_"Morgan! What should I wear?" She cried in panic. Morgan appeared at her side and shifted through Gabriella's various outfits. _

_She pulled out a dress and handed it to her distraught roommate and friend. She smiled at her._

"_Wear this. You'll look fantastic. And besides you know Troy would think you were gorgeous if you were in a hoodie and jeans."_

"_That's besides the point." Gabriella argued from behind their dressing screen, emerging a few seconds later with the dress on. _

_She flew over to the mirror and began to run a brush through her long curls, pinning her hair up in bobby pins so that her bangs were pulled back from her face, but her hair still hung loosely down her back. She then applied a little bit of eye-liner, eye-shadow and lip gloss (Not being one for lip-stick) and then inspected herself, anxiously._

_The dress that Morgan had picked out fell to her knees. It was green in colour and little blue flowers on it. It was held up by two thin straps and clung to her body until just above the waist, where it fanned out in ruffles to her knees. Her hair was pulled back into a half-ponytail and her make-up was flawless. Still, Gabriella was uncertain and turned to Morgan._

"_So? How do I look?" she asked, fluffing her hair. Morgan whistled._

"_Girl, Troy won't be able to look away from you!" She said honestly, smiling in approval. _

_Just then there was a knock on the door and Gabriella felt butterflies in her stomach. Morgan gave her a thumbs-up and then opened the door to reveal Troy standing there. She slipped past him and Gabriella hurriedly slipped on her black flats before putting herself in his line of view. _

_Troy's eyes widened as he took her image in and then smiled at her, his eyes twinkling. Gabriella hurried across the floor and hurled herself into his waiting arms. He laughed and swung her around in a circle, hugging her tightly which caused her to cling to him._

"_Troy! Put me down!" She squealed. He laughed and set her down._

"_Miss me?"_

"_Of course." She replied._

"_Are you sure?" Troy inquired, poking her in the ribs. She laughed and pushed his hands away._

"_Yes." She assured him, smiling._

"_There it is" He said, quietly._

"_There's what?" Gabriella asked, cocking her head to the side. Troy pulled her closer to him._

"_Your laugh. My favourite sound in the whole world." He replied, gently kissing her. _

_The kiss was simple yet filled with passion and love. Some would say it wasn't even a kiss at all, but to Gabriella and Troy, it was a kiss and so much more._

_______End Of Flashback_______

Troy grinned and then jumped as his cell phone rang. He pulled it out and beamed when he read the caller ID.

"Hey beautiful." He answered, listening for the bubbly reply he knew Gabriella would respond with. It didn't come.

"Troy? I need to tell you something but you have to promise not to freak out, okay?" Gabriella said, her voice strained.

"Yeah, of course." Troy replied, getting up from the table and moving outside the bar so he could hear her better. His friends all asked what was wrong, but Troy ignored them, focussing only on his upset girlfriend.

"You remember that I had a doctor's appointment today?"

"You mentioned it, yeah. How'd it go?" He asked, fearing the answer.

"Well…I got more results back then I bargained for. They found something iffy when they were doing the tests for my check up, so they ran some more and they told me that I…that I…"

Gabriella trailed off, struggling to control her voice. Troy waited anxiously, hearing her shuddery breathing.

"What is it babe?" He probed gently.

"They told me that I have a b-brain tumour and it's inoperable. Troy I only have a few weeks left to live." She choked out.

Troy felt his face drain of all colour and his heart skipped a beat. This couldn't be happening. There must be a bad connection and he had miss-heard her. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming and then tried to catch his breath.

"W-what? How could-?"

"I'm going to die Troy." Gabriella interrupted, her voice breaking. "And there's nothing I can do about it."

Gabriella had just confirmed his worst fear. He was losing her and nothing could stop it.

"I'm coming. I want to be with you. I want to make the most of the time we have left." He informed her, already walking towards his residence.

"No. Troy you can't. You have to stay where you are. I _need_ you to stay where you are. Trust me, it'll be easier for you to move on after I'm gone. I want you to remember me the way I always was, not on my deathbed, hardly able to breathe. Please Troy. Can you do that for me?" Gabriella begged, tears rolling down her face.

Troy stopped dead in his tracks, not believing that he was hearing. She didn't want to see him. Gabriella, the girl of his dreams, the girl he had given his heart to, didn't want him to come to her.

"Please Troy. Please." Gabriella repeated. Troy took a shuddery breath.

"If that's what you want, Brie." He breathed. He heard her sob quietly.

"It's what I want. I'm so sorry Troy, it's not that I don't want you to be there, I just think it'd be better if you weren't." Gabriella explained. Troy said nothing, stunned into silence. "Troy…I love you. You know that right?"

"Yes." He whispered, feeling a tear roll down his cheek. "And I love you too. More than anything in the whole universe."

"I know. Never forget me okay?"

"I won't. I promise." He pledged.

"I'm going back to Albuquerque so I can d-die at home with my mom. I'll call the rest of the gang and tell them too. I'll never forget you Troy, and I love you so, so much."

"I love you too Gabriella." Troy said, sobbing openly now.

"Goodbye Troy."

"Bye." He replied and listened as she hung up the phone. Once the dial tone sounded in his ear he began to run. Past the buildings and people, until he got to his residence, where he bounded up the stairs and charged into his room, which was empty.

He roared in fury and frustration, kicking the wall so hard that it gave way and his foot went through. Troy swore loudly and then sat down hard on his bed, resting his head in his hands. So that was it. He had just said goodbye to the love of his life forever and he couldn't even see her again. Troy's eyes flashed and he glared at the carpet below him as if it were to blame for all his worries.

A sudden idea struck him and he jumped up. She'd be furious with him but he couldn't go out that way. He _wouldn't_ go out that way. He picked up his bag and began to pack.

* * *

Gabriella moaned and rolled around in her bed, clutching her head in her hands. Maria Montez watched with tear filled eyes as her only daughter struggled against the massive headache. She had been given countless medications to help with the pain but the doctors had warned both of them that in the end it would be very painful for Gabriella.

The headaches had been getting worse since the time Gabriella had arrived back in New Mexico and they both knew that Gabriella had barely hours left, if not less. The only two out of her fellow Wildcats that she had been able to see were Chad and Sharpay, who were both heartbroken at the news. The rest of the gang knew now, but were unable to come because of university and were distraught that they couldn't be with Gabriella in her time of need.

"Ella? Is there anything I can get you?" Maria asked. Gabriella moaned again and waved a hand, telling her mother that there wasn't. Maria sat back on her heels and watched helplessly as Gabriella fought as hard as her tired body would allow.

Maria hated seeing her daughter fight through this and would give anything to switch places with her. Gabriella was so young and vibrant. She hadn't had time to live her life yet. A silent tear ran down her cheek and she reached out to stroke Gabriella's curls.

Suddenly Gabriella went dead still and Maria's breath caught in her throat, half rising as she looked fearfully at her daughter. Then Gabriella let out a shriek and writhed around under the bed sheets, ripping at her hair. Maria gently freed her body from the sheets and began to sob.

Slowly Gabriella's struggles slowed and her breathing came out in short gasps. Maria knew the time had come and she hurried to her daughter's side, planting a kiss on Gabriella's sweaty brow.

The door swung open and Maria spun around as a flash of movement blew past her and onto the bed beside Gabriella.

Troy.

He glanced at Maria and then gently stroked Gabriella's cheek, gathering her in his arms.

"If you are going to die _anywhere_ it'll be in my arms." He said defiantly, not knowing if she could hear him.

Gabriella's eyelids fluttered and she gazed up into Troy's eyes which were flashing with determination. She knew she should feel angry that he had disobeyed her but she didn't. Her heart was slowing and she summoned all of her strength together.

"I…wouldn't have…it…any…other…way." She breathed and with that, reached up to stroke his cheek, her muscles straining. Troy leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, surprised at the amount of energy he received back.

Then Gabriella gasped, her eyes glazing over, and her breathing grew shallow. Her eyes closed and she let her head rest on Troy's chest, breathing in his scent once more, before going limp.

_**Gabriella Maria Montez**_

_**Lies here**_

_**May 23, 1990 – October 12, 2008**_

_**Beloved daughter**_

_**Cherished friend**_

_**Adored girlfriend**_

_**May she rest in peace**_

**AN: *sob* So Gabriella died. What do you think of it? Love it? Hate it? Was it too rushed? The dress that Gabriella wore is in my profile in case anyone wants to see it. R&R people!**


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